I don’t collect Word Bearers. I most likely never will collect Word Bearers. But bugger me do these models from Forge World look good! These leaked photos aren’t brilliant so don’t do the models justice, but they still look amazing.

Yearning…

As if shit hadn’t got real enough in the first book, the second book in Forge World’s Horus Heresy series isn’t far away. Massacre steps off from the Dropsite Massacre and so will focus a lot on the Iron Hands, Word Bearers & Salamanders, with the Night Lords chucked in for good measure. The artwork looks stunning and it looks like we can expect more Primarch models. Which is very exciting.

Cast your mind back. It’s 2002 and Games Workshop are preparing for the Eye of Terror campaign. A fledgling Black Library released Storm of Iron, a book by Graham McNeill, who at the time was perhaps best known for his work on the Games Workshop Design Team. It was good. Like, really good. The community’s reaction was pretty positive. Yet since then, it feels like that same community seems to have soured on him, if only for the crime of liking Ultramarines. [Fuckers! - Ed.]

For my own part, I’ve not always enjoyed everything Graham has written, but he’s one of the few writers that seems to be experimenting and testing his limits with each new book he writes. His books often don’t quite work for me, but his ability to mix of 40k battles and more nuanced exploration of the universe wins me over more often than not.

My pre ramble is important, because if there was a way of describing my gut feeling of A Thousand Sons, it’s “Mostly works, if not quite as much as it should”. It’s going to take the rest of this review to explain why.

Now, how go best go about it? If you are familiar with the history of the 40k universe at all, you will know the Fall of Prospero is one of the defining moments of the Horus Heresy. A Thousand Sons starts sometime before that and allows us to get to know the legion, as it explores the galaxy trying to increase mankind’s knowledge, which they see as the real purpose of the Great Crusade.  Censured at the Council of Nikaea for treading a dangerous path, events soon spiral out of control and the Imperium will never be the same again.

The main drive and focus of the book is secrets. Everyone has them, from our humble Remembrancers, the human element of the book, to Magnus, Primarch of the Thousand Sons himself. Even the Space Wolves, usually portrayed as being as subtle as an axe to the face, are keeping back something, which suits a book about a Legion that one day will become the servants of the trickster god Tzeentch.

The novel is certainly very effective at allowing you to empathise with the 15th Legion, as by allowing you to see their triumphs through to their lows, you gain a real sense of the tragedy of the situation, as two Primarchs refuse to back down from one another until it’s too late. Getting to see the glorious paradise of Prospero and how the Space Wolves appear as alien invaders allows for a great contrast to A Thousand Sons sister book Prospero Burns. It really makes you root for a legion that could otherwise come off as more arrogant and monstrous than the Emperor’s Children.

McNeill is good at penning an action scene and the description of the fall of Prospero as one continuous piece in the latter half of the book manages to capture both a personal scale of Magnus’ folly and the larger more epic of the war around him, that an event like the Horus Heresy demands. The only real failing of the book is its human characters. Whilst fairly prominent at the start of the novel, the Remembrancers seem to be lost and forgotten by the second half, until suddenly they become prominent characters at a time that is disruptive to the more interesting narrative of Magnus and his son’s discovery of Horus’ plans. By the time of the invasion the characters have any further involvement cut off, in a sentence that seems to hint they make it back to Prospero, without any follow-up. Perhaps my memory is faulty, but it’s an odd ending to characters that have been written to make us care about them, only to have them dropped as any hint of a future absent once the big fighting scenes kick in. [I think the point was that fate can call upon even the lowliest soul to change the galaxy, but be just as quick to discard them. But that's just me. -Ed.]

All in all, apart from the odd bit of clunky dialogue, I really have no actual complaints about the book. It flows well, and Graham manages his usual trick of making each battle about more than just cool explosions and bolter porn. A real blast from start to finish and a nice counterpart to Dan Annett’s  Prospero Burns. It’s probably the best work I’ve read of Graham’s yet and I look forward to reading his further contributions to both the 30k and 40k universe.

A Thousand Sons is available via The Black Library as an E-book or physical copy, or is available from all good high street booksellers. And Waterstones.

Alan Bligh waxes lyrical about the new Horus Hersey book. It looks utterly gorgeous with some incredible original artwork in there. If only I didn’t understand the value of money…

Some of the #warmongers may recall a week or so ago I was asking what draws you to a particular Space Marine Chapter, this was all brought on by the imminent release of the new Space Marines Codex and miniatures as well as my own penchant for never doing anything simple.

Let me explain where my train of thought came from. It started with a comment on twitter made by I believe @RTGamer about creating a Celtic themed Space Marine Chapter. As some of you may realise from recent posts I have a bit of a wet spot for Scibor Monstrous Miniatures who do a range of sci-fi Knights which are Celtic themed as well as some familiar looking themed shoulder pads.

My brain was ticking and after a quick chat with Phil over a few days, I acquired a copy of the Space Wolves Codex to base my home-brew chapter on and the long arduous task of deciding on a name began and to be honest I think is still going on.

Anyway I digress. Doing all this got me to thinking why is it I find myself so drawn to this idea more than any of the other chapters that already exist? Way back when, I had a thing for the Dark Angels but they seem to of changed ever so slightly in essence since my departure and return to the hobby, and I just don’t feel the love any more.

So why do we pick the chapters we do? Is it the background fluff that really stirs you to collect a certain chapter? Is it a particular book from the Black Library that reaches down your trousers and has a good rummage? I know @LemonPainting was influenced towards the Salamanders after reading Nick Kymes books. [Because Nick Kyme's fucking awesome - Ed.]

“@Mat_Mac @TheShellCase the books by @NickKyme were a huge influence on me doing salamanders probably the same with the Gaunt’s Ghosts books. If the books weren’t so good I would have gone back to a homemade chapter or no marines at all.”

I know this feeling well myself, as after listening to the Garro audio dramas recently I really wanted to do a Grey Knights army, I also know Phil was inspired by the background fluff for the Ultramarines to collect his First and Fifth companies. I also think he wanted to prove a point about that Ultramarines aren’t just for kids and can look good.

Then there’s the colour scheme. Do you collect Imperial Fists because yellow is your favourite colour, or you like the specific challenge of the paint scheme which is why you went with the Legion of the Damned or maybe you choose that particular chapter because it would be a quick army to put together?

@OmegaSupreme80 picked his Crimson fists because he liked the colour scheme as well as the background fluff:

“@Mat_Mac @TheShellCase Picked Crimson Fists due to combination of colour scheme, background and Kantor’s model (love it!)”

He was also drawn to them because of a certain model. This may be why you are now fielding an army of Black Templars, because you just had to have the Emperors Champion model. With Forge World giving us even more choice how does this influence you into choosing what you’re going to field do you like me find yourself flipping through web pages of miniatures thinking how you could create your own characters for your chosen army, taking inspiration from something you’ve read to create a figure that appears in a certain story. Do you want to field the Grey Knights but have Nathaniel Garro leading them into battle against a Daemon horde?

Or is it simply like @OmegaSupreme80′s reason for loving the Space Wolves because they are Vikings…in…SPACE! His exact words I promise.

Maybe you’re drawn to their sensibilities and feel some sort of bond with the essence of the Chapter the fearless honour of the Blood Angels or the Clandestine practices of the Dark Angels.

Whatever the reason, those of us that feel the lure of the power armoured post human are drawn to a particular style of Space Marine Chapter whether, like me, you want to create your own because something has inspired you or you just want to make life difficult for yourself. Or you find a certain empathy for one of the existing Chapters for some reason or another whether it’s a kick ass model or striking colour scheme. We all have a story to tell as to why we chose what we did, and I realise as I write this that it’s not just limited to why we choose our Space Marine chapter but why we choose the Army we do be it Eldar, Necron,  Tyranid or any army for any game. There’s just something about them that resonates with us.

I would really like to hear from any of you as to your reasons to why you field what you do and maybe do a follow-up to this post just think it would be interesting to see what it is that makes us tick.

So what’s in a name or the colour scheme or that particular model that made you choose the army you did?

And don’t forget to enter the Create a Space Marine Chapter competition to tell your own story!

Prepare, sons of Iron, you’re about to get a raging hobby on. For £55 you could own Ferrus Manus, primarch of the Iron Hands Legion. He’s not quite what I imagined but he still looks pretty bad ass. And combined with Fulgrim even more so. The armour is incredible and the backpack baffling. The nice thing is that the arms and hammer – the two most iconic part of the primarch haven’t been over done. They detailed and in proportion with the rest of the model but with some nice touches in there all the same. I suspect he’ll be available at Games Day so I’m sure the Forge World stand will be even more rammed than normal.

Feast your eyes on the snaps and at the bottom is a vid from Forge World talking about how the model came into being. Enjoy…

He’s a tubby bastard isn’t he…clearly there’s a few votive pies in the Chaos pantheon.

Awesome model though. The mace is bag on and the armour and base is incredible.

I got the demons codex recently, and whilst I toy with writing a review for it (it’s coming, trust me), it’s given me time to think back on Chaos in its myriad forms. From first reading about the pantheon of Chaos in Warhammer & 40k, it’s been by far the most fascinating concept of the two universes to me. As as far as I’m concerned, it’s the best thing Games Workshop have developed (originally created but not copyrighted by Michael Moorecock – numpty) and released to the world. It’s close to perfection as an idea. To poorly mangle a famous saying, if Games Workshop hadn’t invented Chaos, someone would have had to invent it anyway*. The concept of Chaos is so intrinsic to both settings: so key to how they work, that without them I truly believe that Games Workshop would not have half the success or fan base it does now.

But what makes the concept of the Chaos Gods so appealing or compelling? Beyond simple lustings for power, eternal life at the head of Empires, fantasies, wish fulfilment and golden toilet seats that is? I believe it’s that there is a complexity to them. Admittedly there’s always been a section of the fandom that like to pigeon-hole each of the gods into something simple like Khorne = close combat, Nurgle = disease. Etcetera etcetera. And I can understand why and that’s fine, the hobby is broad and inclusive and not everyone needs to delve into the lore to enjoy it.

Since third edition 40k, Games Workshop have always tried to keep things simple in the main army books. Its only been the introduction of books like the Libre Chaotica and the original Realms of Chaos books that came close to truly describing the eldritch terror of the Chaos Gods.

More than that I think what makes people identify with them so much is because of how, deep down, we recognise how easy it would be to become a disciple of the Ruinous Powers. Because to truly understand nature of chaos, you have to understand that all the gods are intrinsically linked to the underlying theme of addiction.

“insert joke about quitting smoking here”

Now am I saying that all addicts are potential Chaos worshippers? Or that to truly understand the nature of them you have to be an addict yourself? Of course not. For a start, that completely denigrate anyone involved in the argument and is a disingenuous one at best, that undercuts the real world horror of substance misuse and dependency. It’s just acknowledging that to me at least, that the two groups share some similarities and that it may be why a lot of people have trouble grasping that nature of Chaos. As a society we’re all fairly egocentric and struggle to empathise unless we have gone through or know people in such situations. There’s also a lot bad information, opinions, misconceptions and good old fashion bollocks out there.

Being an addict is not something you just ‘give up’. You often just replace it with something else**. I remember reading the origin of Haargroth the Blooded One when the idea of Chaos first properly ‘clicked’ with me. The story of a young man abused by society who finally snaps and gains fulfilment and acceptance in mindless anger. It really struck a chord with a younger me. I realised how in reality he wasn’t much different from how I felt at that age and just how seductive that could be to a person who had had no power before. That’s what Chaos is at its core. It’s a way of seeking refuge from a world you can’t quite gel with, be it elevating yourself above it via Tzeentch or Nurgle, or succumbing to crazed desire via Khorne or Slannesh. But what all their followers have in common is obsession. That’s the key driving point of addiction and dependency.

To give it a frame of reference: The film ‘Get him to the Greek’ starred Russell Brand as a washed up rockstar and Jonah Hill of Superbad fame. It’s ok, if not brilliant. But something Brand (and if anyone has experience of addiction and dependency) said struck a chord with me:

“You know I used to be sober. When I was sober I was worried about: ‘Aw, is this the twilight of my career?’ ‘Is the mother of my child a cruel, evil, brilliant, savant, idiot genius?’ ‘Am I bringing up my kid the right way?’ Now, I just worry about drugs. Your life’s to-do list must be a baffling document. You’re worried about so many things, Aaron. You’re worried about: ‘Will we get to the show?’ ‘Will I perform well?’ ‘Will you get the credit that you deserve?’ Mine has on it but one word. Do you know what that word is?”

Now, go and approach everything you have ever thought about Chaos and its worshippers from that perspective.  See how that changes everything?

To be a worshipper of Chaos is to start from a point where every addict starts. It’s one where the tempted dip their toe in and get a taste for something. Then they slowly take more and more until the effect generated compared to the side effects is no longer an equal balance. That’s what makes the Emperor’s Children chasers of excess in any form. Their addiction has rewired their entire brain and body chemistry until they can only experience the world properly via an ever-increasing excess. Of course they can still rationalise. Of course they can still operate as functional beings. But to those Chaos worshippers who are so far down the path as to be almost unreachable, the world is a grey to them unless they are experiencing that high.

I mean sure, real world addictions don’t end up with you growing an extra arm or becoming a writhing ball of mutation. But the path taken to that end is very similar.

It’s a reminder that we aren’t so far removed from desperation and just how great fiction of any sort can be exploring the parts of humanity that we would rather not dwell on. It’s what makes the Chaos Gods so scary to me, because I know, that if the Chaos Gods existed I would have already joined them.

Forget super powered marines of death. Forget daemons that want to feast on your soul. The Chaos Gods would have a lot of us within seconds and it would have been something we would have willingly offered. Now that’s terrifying.

*I’ve been told the sentence should really read  ”If Games Workshop hadn’t plagiarised and then stolen ownership of the idea of Chaos from Micheal Moorecock, they would have had to hire someone to do it for them anyway”, but its diverting attention away from the main topic of this post and I’ve found it doesn’t really trip off the tongue that easily . Still, perhaps something for a future column. 

**I could talk for thousands of words about this, but it’s not the time or place. As it is though I’m so far left field from most normal topics covering wargaming that I don’t want to invite even more Editorial wrath

All Images in this article are Copyright of Games Workshop.

So to mix things up a bit from my barrage of Warhammer Fantasy Battles articles for A Tale of Two Armies I thought I’d take a look at the new Codex Space Marines. Written, as it goes, by Robin Cruddace who wrote both the Empire book and Warriors of Chaos.

The good news is that Robin Cruddace collects Space Marines so he hasn’t completely shafted the army like he did the Empire. The bad news is that it’s the most boring iteration of any Codex Space Marines I’ve ever read. And I’ve read them all. Robin’s strength isn’t creative writing. And that’s fine, we can’t be good at everything, but his lack of flair means that much of the background is lack lustre or just copy and pasted from previous iterations. The worst bit being that none of the background except the Raven Guard entry reflects any of the stuff written in the Horus Heresy novels. Seeing as they’re canonical* that’s really rather poor form and a bit of a slap in the face. It also reads like he was terrified of offending someone as just about every Space Marine chapter mentioned in the book is a brotherhood of warriors without peer with more victories than any other. I defy you to read the book and tell me I’m wrong. The funniest one being the Howling Griffins which he collects and he may as well have just written, in crayon, these ones are the bestest. It’s all just so unnecessary. It’s also rife with typos, some sentences with multiple errors which really pisses me off and goes to show how little care was shown. Yes I make mistakes and use the wrong word from time to time, but I don’t charge you for it.

The good news is that, for the first time ever, the first founding codex chapters actually get proper sections now, which makes for a very thick book. And despite the average writing there’s some good stuff in there and it’s nice to see those chapters finally getting a mention rather than the book being Codex Ultramarines by any other name. As an Ultramarine player I did feel like something was missing but that’s just me being spoilt. The book is lovely. Much of the artwork is from previous books, which isn’t a complaint as it’s in colour for the first time which is nice to see. There’s a full-page piece of art of a Raven Guard Thunderhawk which is superb. So kudos to the art studio.

As has been established, the Space Marines new kits were in the form of re-releases and Centurions as well as the official additions of Storm Talons and Storm Ravens. I was slightly disappointed about the latter as I never had a problem with an army or armies having exclusive units. That said, they will undoubtedly perform a vital battlefield role and give Codex Chapters a real edge over…well everyone. As does a lot of the new gadgets and gizmos. The graviton guns are a new weapon option that wasn’t needed and will spank Chaos Space Marines. The army that frequently kicks Cruddace’s Griffins about the board all the time.

The Centurions I was a bit mixed on at first. I know a lot of people have slated the models but I kinda like them. And I kinda like what they’ll do for Space Marine armies. Their addition to the Codex is a little on the woolly side but it’s not the first time and it won’t be the last. They’re nasty buggers that’s for sure and actually with the right force composition could be really nasty. The Devastator Centurions are, on paper, better than a Devastator Squad thanks to being able to move and fire. Assuming they make it into range. The Assault variation will need a transport because both types are slow and purposeful. But if your opponent lets them get into combat then things will bleed. A lot. At 190 points for 3 they’re not a casual addition but the strength & toughness of 5 with 2 wounds is a real consideration and potential performance verses points they’re actually pretty good value.

There’s a few subtle changes throughout Codex Space Marines. Vanguard Veterans don’t get to assault on the turn they deep strike any more which is a real shame as that was their one big advantage and offset the horrendous points cost. So in terms of assaulting they’re a bit worse than Warp Talons now. But they’re now much much cheaper which is good because it means you can juice them as much as you like. They are Elite choices now though which is shit. And there’s still no way of fielding a first company outside of robbing rules of the Dark Angels which is massively disappointing. But even if it was, having Vanguard & Sternguard together makes fielding the Ultramarines 1st Company impossible. Which is a real shame I suspect grouping them together was a convenience thing rather than it being a carefully thought out decision.

There’s also been plenty of points changes throughout the book. So Captains are cheaper, as are Space Marine Tactical, Assault & Devastator squads. Which is a massive deal as across a 3,000 point game you’re going to gather up, across the army, quite a few spare points. Some weapons have gone up in price, almost arbitrarily, and assault cannons have got much more expensive. Because they’re amazing in 6th edition. It’s a shame someone noticed as I rather enjoyed taking advantage of that.

Big changes in the Codex, or changes back, is the flexible squad sizes with special or heavy weapons in tactical squads. Which is great news for the less conventional armies. Being an Ultramarine player I shall still be taking the full ten men as Guilliman intended. Squads that have split into combat squads now get to occupy the same Rhino which game changing. It means that for the first time since Second Edition you can move a squad up the field and then send them on their separate ways. It gives Space Marines a massive tactical advantage over everyone else and will actually mean the kind of flexibility you read about in the books.

But the biggest change/reversion by a mile in Codex Space Marines is the introduction of chapter tactics. They’re actually very good – which makes up for the fairly average warlord traits – and reflect the personalities of the armies incredibly well so full marks to Cruddace on that front. Ultramarines and Imperial Fists seem to benefit the most with their traits being very much performance enhancing across the entire army, which rather does reflect the personality of the chapters. That’s not to say the others aren’t without teeth they’re just far more specialist. Again, as one would expect. The Raven Guard’s ability to infiltrate everyone is pretty bad ass.

It’s a real shame that the background isn’t as strongly written as the rest of the Codex. There’s some good stuff buried beneath the average writing – and it really comes down to someone needing to take a firm hand. The repetition phrases and poorly constructed sentences is embarrassing. However, the army list, chapter traits and tweaks and new additions are actually pretty spot on with the exception of making the Vanguard, cheaper, in the wrong place and shitter.

The Centurions do, after some consideration, fulfil genuine battlefield roles that is more than just dreaming up something new for release. Well, actually, no it was dreamt up for release but it works is my point. And it gives players – particularly Iron Hands and Imperial Fists – a different way of fielding an army whilst still making it competitive. You may notice I’ve not really commented on the new anti-air Rhino variants. And that’s because they’re a necessary unit and they are what they. They shoot down flyers. Hooray. The rules for them are actually pretty nasty and they’re pretty good value for points but they’re Space Marine anti-air guns, there’s not much more to be said.

Overall Codex Space Marines is a good book. The background isn’t terrible, not by a long chalk. It’s just not as well written as it should have been and would have taken little more than a couple of proof reads to make it better. This said it’s tolerable enough that those new to Space Marines or only got in to collecting Space Marines with the previous Codex will still enjoy reading it. The rest of the book is pretty sound and the army list works. The point adjustments are for the most part valid and the chapter traits and flexibility in army selection is a welcome change and will make a lot of gamers very pleased. And interestingly thanks to the subtle change that you can now take Techmarines as part of your HQ choice, you can free up an Elite slot in battle company list. Which is rather handy. And it may just be in the shape of some Assault Centurions. And the free Heavy Support slot may just have to feature a Storm Raven. Just saying…

Codex Space Marines is available from Firestorm Games priced £31.50.

*A heated discussions has erupted over my use of this word which I’ve deleted because I felt it was inappropriate. This isn’t censorship but avoidance of an argument that simply could not be settled on a comments board and shouldn’t take place there either. I’m all for healthy debate but when there is a fundamental disagreement that cannot be resolved there is little merit in making it public. My use of the term may have been incorrect but refers to the simple truth that the games developers reap a tremendous harvest from the ideas and characters in the BL novels. To say they’re non-canonical is as inaccurate as saying, apparently, they are. Equally the Forge World Horus Heresy books rely so heavily on the novels for material it would be a great injustice to the series, the writers and those that have enjoyed reading them to condemn to little more than fan fiction.

So how to describe Chaos Daemons as an army? Well, random I suppose is the best word. But random in a way that can be pretty much mitigated if you know how and are willing to pay the points. Playing a Chaos Daemon army is a bit like being an accountant.  A daemonic one. So like an accountant. Figuring out the best margins, cost to risk ratios and how to spin the random tables in your favour is half the fun of this book.

But let’s start with the basics before I get too ahead of myself. It’s a very pretty book. Finally having a codex in full colour gives the artists and designers full licence to go to town on how much craziness they are allowed to inject into an otherwise pretty standard codex template by this point. Each section for the four Gods has slightly different border designs and the inclusion of a fold out with a summary of most of the salient points of the Codex is particularly useful, given the number of tables a player will need to roll on pre, and during, a game.

Another new (or at least something I at least haven’t seen for a while) addition is designers notes in a vein similar to Privateer Press’, that clarify points that may not be immediately apparent. With a lot of arguments about things like “Rules As Written” and “Rules As Intended” on the net, its nice to see Games Workshop’s designers spending the time to clear up some points that, due to the loose nature of 40k’s rules, may seem ambiguous otherwise. I just wish it was for everything rather than just a few entries, as my first glance through revealed some pretty broken combos if the interpretation is taken as RAW rather than RAI.

There isn’t much additional background text added to what exists unfortunately, though with the colour text and illustrations it’s still of a pretty high calibre, if not great compared to what came before in my opinion.

What does seem to be becoming clearly defined now is how Games Workshop view the Chaos Gods. In the past they were sort of loosely defined as omnipresent and unknowable beings that existed in the warp. Now it seems that there is The Warp, as controlled by Chaos Space Marines and other renegades like Daemon Princes and the Traitor Primarchs.  Then there is a deeper part of The Warp which has fantasy realms controlled by the Gods (as in, not planets, just plains) where the Gods literally reside in structures created by their whims.

Though in the past it was easy to see these as allegorical in some way: someone’s mind entering the warp and trying to make sense of it. Games Workshop are clearly trying to re-sculpt a lot of the Gods of the 40k Universe as more of the Greek and Roman variety, prone to squabbling amongst one another and capable of very human emotions, if admittedly emotions that can result in entire worlds being destroyed. In the end it’s a personal preference and whilst I don’t quite like it, I can see many more people quite liking Gods they can engage with as maniacal villains, eyes poised over the galaxy like hungry sharks.

As for the list itself, well it’s pretty solid, if nothing exactly stands out. The many new additions seem to add a lot of options to the army without overpowering it significantly (though the idea of  Plaguebringers being jumpack cavalry sounds like something I will have to check out), with perhaps the only dud being the Skull Cannon of Khorne. Even then, that’s just because it’s outshone by the far more appealing Slanneshi chariots. In the end, it’s just nice that mono God armies finally have more options to their lists than the prior codex, which will reduce a need to have mixed God armies for those that would rather not.

There’s also been an effort to make Daemonic Heralds a real alternative to their Monstrous Creature counterparts, as Heralds are now able to grant abilities to units via Locus’. Whilst this may anger some long time players, as many of these Locus’ were what units came with as standard in the past, I see it as an advantage. Now each unit has a wealth of new options open to it depending on what Locus is selected by the Herald and each unit is a part of a larger piece of the army. To this end you can now take four, yes four, Heralds per HQ choice. At a base cost  of all four without upgrades being just under the cost of a single Greater Daemon, you may find they will aid your army a whole lot more than just one monster.

Of course some units, like Bloodcrushers and the ever reliable Greater Daemons, can eat squads a turn, but you will pay through the nose for them. Now it’s probably much better to have one of those units and have lots of smaller squads to help them achieve that. There are token efforts to combat fliers by giving Soulgrinders an anti-aircraft weapon and making the winged big beaties Flying Monstrous Creatures. As always too, Tzeentchian squads are more predisposed towards psychic powers and shooting. But overall, most of your squads will be racing across the board to get stabby as quickly as possible. As Deep Strike is no longer mandatory either, it’s a lot easier to set up plans for a game, instead of hoping that a single dice roll goes in your favour.

However, this is where the fun starts. Characters no longer buy equipment, but instead buy rolls on tables. The default choice is usually an okay close combat weapon (an AP 2 master crafted weapon for 10 points is pretty nice), with the better rolls allowing for stat increases, psychic powers or things like the ability to summon more daemons. The default roll is useful in that when tailoring a unit a certain way you can have a backup in case your roll something not usable to the model. Still, it would be nice to know that when you are spending 50 plus points, something useful will come of it!

Add to this the Warlord trait rolls, the mission rolls, the Warpstorm table that is rolled each turn and as you can see there’s a lot to keep track of at any one time. This reliance on randomness has, unfortunately, left an army list with few additional options. Thanks to Phil Kelly’s deft touch, key designer Robin Cruddace has managed to avoid making any one unit a must buy and I can see many different types of list coming out of this Codex. It’s just 60% of those lists will amount to a core of multiple, almost identical units due to a lack of afore-mentioned options.

In the end the Chaos Daemons book isn’t what I would call a crowning achievement, mainly due to the reliance on being lucky at rolling on tables. Those who have played Chaos Daemons for a while will be used to this though and I’m sure will be hitting the top places of tournament tables soon enough. The codex has also opened up a lot of new options with the addition of just a few new units. I just wonder if said reliance on random may put off new players from what is otherwise a really interesting army with a unique hook. I’m certainly going to be adding a few units to my Word Bearers force soon, which in time will bloom into my own miniature daemonic incursion.

Now, how to explain to the misses that, yes, I DO need another 60+ models…

Codex Chaos Daemons is available from Firestorm Games priced £27.00.

Welcome to the first of many Game Theory articles that will take a detailed look at some of our favourite miniature table top wargames and video games (Interactive visual game entertainment/experiences). I love games and how they work, but I also love to interpret the artistic value of a game as I attempt to get a glimpse of what the creator had in mind as they built these games.

Today we are going to take a look at the notrious victory points system for the games Warhammer Fantasy and Warhammer 40K from Games-Workshop.

1) Why do Victory Points Exist?
The majority of miniature wargames assign a specific price tag or point value to a single/group of miniatures. Within the context of the game world this is supposed to symbolize the differences in quality and quantity between models. Points have a duel purpose, first by being a game balancing agent by creating a disparity between models. With weaker models costing less compared to the more powerful, yet more expensive elite miniatures. Secondly, it allows the game designer to develop a deeper sense of thematic identity for a group of miniatures. For example: the elite powerful Chaos Knights are imbued with the gifts of their Gods, therefore they should be extremely powerful; yet rare because the Gods are fickle about who they bestow their gift upon. Compared to the numerous and weedy goblins, which are weak on their own, but together in a horde can be a greentide of death and misery.

Victory points, are the direct side effect of this system. Miniature wargames, by their true nature need to have a victor and defeated opponent. For a designer, victory points are the most simplistic and rational way to force a victory condition. Each model is worth a point value, every model I remove from my opponent’s army nets me those points and if I can prevent my opponent from doing the same, then I am the victor. Really simple and effective, but is it thematic? To an extent perhaps, because history has shown to contain brutal massacres and drawn out stalemates. However, here is where some of the many problems with victory points begin…

2) The Consequences of the Victory Point System
The primary issue with victory points is how they are utilized within a game system. For starters in Warhammer Fantasy, whenever you run down or completely destroy a unit you gain its combined victory points value. Seems all right so far. Until you begin to notice that this begins to promote two different extremes within the game. Units that are large and full of powerful models (expensive in points because of their improved stats) and dozens of smaller redirecting units (small size and cheap cost) for repositioning these larger more powerful units. Essentially, the larger “death units” are used to clear out other models, while the smaller cheap units/models are used to keep these more powerful models from earning their points back.

Why is this such a big deal? Well the issue is that this system promotes these two extremes and armies will have no middle ground units that offer alternatives or tools for varying the army playstyle. Because the playstyle of an army, is so connected to its theme, you soon get this homogenised effect of armies feeling too similar. Once armies are playing the same style, pretty soon it becomes a min-max game that alienates models/armies that are just under the radar.

Also how people approach the game is altered as well, because now its more about a model’s points value (is a model cost-effective, super cheap or really powerful), instead of a model’s potential tactical value or toolbox nature. For instance: High Elf Sea Guard, have bows and spears for weapons and can switch them on the fly. A fairly flexible unit that can perform a variety of roles, however because of the victory points system, you would be at a disadvantage for taking them. They are more expensive compared to spearmen and bowmen, and even though being flexible is nice, it does make them lackluster, by not being truly great in one particular area.

3) Fixing the Mission
Victory Points often promote a “Kill or be Killed” mentality, but here’s an effective way to change-up this age-old formula. Missions! Simple right? Now I want to clarify that missions that award additional victory points don’t really count, because they haven’t actively solved the problem.

Instead missions should take the focus off the individual models/units (thereby removing emphasis on points values) and focus on tactical play and objective based games. With regards to Fantasy, this could be done with missions that rely on units with banners holding key points on the map. It works thematically (armies smashing face full metal style) and in-game as well because all the models still retain all their roles. Smashy units still smash, redirectors still distract, but now tool box units could potentially have more value. Using the High Elf Sea Guard example; they still lack a defined role but now they can adjust to what the army would need during the game. For instance in a take and hold mission the can offer support by providing additional firepower and break into the zone with the rest of the hammer melee units on that crucial turn.

For more examples of awesome and interesting Warhammer Fantasy Missions, make sure to checkout the Uk Tournament: Blood and Glory! Which is run by Ben Curry from the Bad Dice Podcast for more information on the event and how it played out.

Are these absolute answers or permanent examples of how to change the game? No. But I found that they are a step in the right direction to promote more interesting competitive and casual play in Warhammer Fantasy!

Until next time! 

The Inquisition are on the move. And they have pointy sticks and fiery torches to shove up heretics’ bottoms. And here’s the cover…

It rather lacks the gravity of the main Codex releases but you still wouldn’t mess with him.

As my (not so) short tactica series rolls on, I’m taking some time out to wrap my head around how best to use Daemon units in 40k. Now that it’s finally possible to field mono god lists now that every god has units for each slot of the Force Organisation chart, certain armies are viable where as before they were not.

As I’ve always been a fan of Nurgle, but have never really found Nurgle aligned daemon units to be great in anything but a defensive position, it seems the best place to start. After that I shall move onto other gods and their units, followed by the concept of having multiple god units in one list. But not Tzeentch. That guy is weird.

So where else is best to start but the humble Plaguebearer? Having slightly average stats with the only standouts being Strength and Toughness 4, the cost of the unit is slightly offset by having a Plaguesword, which lets the unit wound anything on, at worst, a 4+ and glancing vehicles on rolls of 6s’.

Plaguebearers, painted by Moon Dog Studios.

But still, with only 1 attack and as Plagueswords have no AP, everything points to them being defensive in usage really and being able to be swept away by even average combat units like Assault Marines. They certainly won’t be killing things from afar, unless you count being ugly as a ranged attack.

The Plague Waxes…

So how to buff them up, or is there even a need? The unit on its own is never going to be great at what it does due to its very limited additional options. But use that to your advantage. Bulk up on extra bodies to overwhelm your opponent and absorb incoming blows. Take a Plagueridden and spend the 10 points needed to surprise your opponent with some AP2 master crafted close combat attacks. Take that icon for +1 to your combat score. All in all, just over 200ish points will net you 20 Plaguebearers, the afore-mentioned champion with his stabby sword of death and a banner. But it can only do so much, which I when we need to start turning to outside forces.

Converted Plaguebearers by Valhallan42nd

We’ve two options in this case, a Demonic Herald of Nurgle and Epidermis. Epidermis is pricey and his sphere of influence has been reduced since the last codex, which makes me somewhat reluctant to recommend him. Regardless though, if you can get the kills in, you suddenly have a few units with lots of extra attacks that would everything on a 2+.

This leaves the Herald of Nurgle, as last time I checked, Monstrous Creatures can’t join Infantry units. Which is just as well, as a Herald can give you a great deal more flexibility that you may expect. For a start, he can start adding the attacks in with Locus of Contagion, which gives extra Strength 4 hits on rolls of 6, or else make them far more survivable against the opponent with the Locus of Fecundity (which I would always plump for regardless of use personally just for the name alone) which gives them Feel No Pain.

Plaguebearer artwork from Games Workshop

As with the unit champion, unless you are hot with your dice, its only ever work investing a few points in your daemonic table rolls for me, as it can help him get a bigger  stick of whacking, but the random nature of the rest always makes me a bit wary of spending too many points . Keep your Heralds cheap and plentiful is my motto, which is why, unless you are forgoing the use of a greater daemon, I tend to skip out on Psychic powers for them. They get pricey fast and the Biomancy powers will be replicating a lot of what you have spent points on via locus’s and deamonic table rolls anyway (or else is redundant as you will be wounding most things on a 4+ or better). The Nurgle powers are pretty good, but again, are a bit reliant on circumstance and being close enough to the enemy without them charging you first. With Slow and Purposeful, that’s always a gamble and its their biggest weakness as potent combat unit.

Still, if you can get a large unit and can get a few enemy units too engage them whilst Miasma of Pestulance is cast, well, its time to have some fun. Most Nurgle units may even go first in combat for once!

..And It Wains

Now lets move onto probably is the best use of Plaguebearers, which is that of a support unit. Like Dark Eldar Wracks, these guys are begging to be hunkered down in cover, especially as they come with Shrouded as standard. If you want to stick a Herald on them with Locus of Fecundity, then all the better! In this scenario, Plaguebearers, as well as being objective claimers, act as ways of getting your more devastating units onto the board without a scratch on them. In a mono Nurgle force, this means pretty much every single unit bar Nurglings.Take a banner and an instrument to help with getting units onto the board fast and hug that cover! With Toughness 4, Feel No Pain and a cover save on them, they should be pretty hard to kill unless significant time is spent on killing them.

At the end of the day you are Slow and Purposeful anyway, so it’s not as if you will be needing to rush up the board. Perhaps Deep Strike a few more units up the board if you feel adventurous for extra pull. The Nurgle psychic powers will start coming into their own too, as you can be counting on units coming to them rather than the other way around.

In the end, Plaguebearers can be used offensively in a pinch, but all the points spent on them would be better equipping them to play a little more conservatively, whilst your more hard-hitting units do the work of killing things. A units of 20 is still nothing to be sniffed at though, and in games in excess of 2000 points, its worth having at least one to counter attack units that get too close to anything important.

You can get Plaguebearers from Firestorm Games, priced £16.20.

“Buboes, phlegm, blood and guts! Boils, bogeys, rot and pus! Blisters, fevers, weeping sores! From your wounds the fester pours.“

My look at units from the Daemons codex continues with Nurgle Plague drones. A hefty price tag comes with these flying carriers of death, but its worth it due to the speed and flexibility they can bring to an otherwise pretty slow force.

The big surprise starts with the stats. Though they come with the standard low Initiative, Weapon and Ballistic Skill of most Nurgle Daemons, Toughness 5 with multiple wounds and attacks more than makes up for it. Along with this, they are Jetpack Cavalry, which means that nothing will be slowing them down and if they choose to Deepstrike in, they can avoid being pie plated to death by using their free assault move.

Plague Drones painted by DeathShadowSun from DeviantArt.

Having a few attacks each and actual delivery system means their plagueswords can be used to target units that they can be used effectively against, rather than hoping for the best and taking it as it comes like you would with Plaguebearers. Take a Plaguebringer with a cheap Etherblade and equip one of the unit with a Plague Banner and watch your opponent do a double take as you cause 4, AP2 attacks wounding on a 2+ along with a bunch more poisoned attacks to follow! It’s perfect for an assassination run on an Independent Character or Monstrous Creature, as the wounds and toughness of the unit champion should allow you to shrug off most attacks.

Alternatively, you can take Death’s Heads, which give them a nice ranged poisoned attack that you can use to weaken more powerful units before moving in for the kill.

One word of caution though. Despite their seemingly impressive toughness and wound characteristic, with only a daemonic invulnerable save and Shrouded to protect them, don’t expect them to last long against really tough or numerous units. They are the definition of a glass hammer, being able to dish out the hurt for a turn or two before losses make them pretty ineffective. Advance carefully up the battlefield (or if you can, deep strike them behind cover then can jump over the following turn) and pick your target well.

Larger games you can afford to have massive units of them, but in a smaller game of 1,000-1,500 points, a unit of 6 is going to be well into the 250 points range, so its a big investment and you will have to think long and hard about how to use them effectively. 

All in all, Plague Drones provide a Nurgle force with something it really needs, which is speed, flexibility and a nasty combat bite against heavy infantry and power armoured opponents in a pinch. For that, they are sure to be your opponents top priority. With good reason too – once your opponent experiences what Plague Drones can do, it won’t be an experience they will be happy to repeat.

Artwork by Les Edwards

Plague Drones are available from Firestore Games for £31.50

As its the Christmas season, lets catch up with those characters in a Daemon army that are just like a cuddly Santa Claus. Except for the decay and pestilence. Nurgle’s made that his own.

A festive Greater Daemon of Nurgle in the GW Battle Bunker in Maryland, USA

Great Unclean One: Greater Daemon of Nurgle

So, what else needs to be said? One of the most powerful units of the entire game and one of the toughest too, his only downside is that he’s hampered by being Slow and Purposeful. However, a lack of wings means he does come in considerably cheaper than other greater demons, and when you consider he can Deep  Strike…well there’s very little reason not to, unless you plan on using his bulk to intimidate an opponent as he waddles up the battlefield.

His other great advantage is Psychic Powers. Whilst it is tempting to spend all your points on Daemonic Reward rolls, as all Nurgle Psycher’s have access to Biomancy, you could end up having a pretty much unstoppable model with a few luck rolls. Toughness 10, Strength 9 (all the better for those poison re-rolls against other Monstrous Creatures), 8 Attacks, Initiative 7 and Feel No Pain! All for under the base starting cost of a Bloodthirster!

Again, he’s a slow model, so depending on what Psychic Powers you roll, he may just be useful as a line-breaker for the the rest of your forces, creeping slowly on but almost impossible to put down. In the end, he’s so versatile I can’t imagine not taking him in games over 1500 points. 200-300 points is an investment, and if you want a faster but more fragile option its better to stick with a Daemon Prince, but I’m pretty sure the models is capable of earning the investment back. Even if its just to keep the rest of your force alive long enough to get close enough for combat. It’s a purchase that’s pretty much mandatory.

Greater Daemon Character: Ku’Gath Plaguefather

This guy though, I’m not too convinced on. He’s a little too pricey for what is being offered in his special rules. Overall, whilst he is cheaper and has some stat increases over a basic Great Unclean One, the general downgrading of his abilities (and him being merely a level 1 Psyker) means that for 260 points, he’s probably not worth it unless you are dead set on a theme that includes him. In almost all respects, even with his ranged weapon, the basic Great Unclean One is better. That Ku’Gath doesn’t have his own model yet just seals the deal for me.

Daemon Princes of Nurgle

Daemon Prince model by Forgeworld

Now, onto the last big scary beastie you can field in a mono Nurgle force. Along with Heralds, Daemon Princes are probably one of the most customizable units in the entire list. With the wings he can be given, it’s tempting to just zoom him up the board casting psychic powers before leaping into combat. This does leave him pretty vulnerable and a priority target, but I’m convinced that if advanced in concert with some Plague Drones or a few Deep Striking units, well, your opponent will have a much harder time deciding what he needs to take care of first.

As, if he takes wings, he becomes one of the most manoeuvrable units in your army, I would be tempted to give him an roll on the Exalted Rewards table. He’s a big enough being to not need a special close combat weapon, and the Exalted Rewards table gives him access to Hellforged Artefacts, with the very tempting PortalGlyph or Eternal Blade. It comes down to preference, but I quite like the ability to get an extra small unit of Plaguebearers a turn for free.

Otherwise, without wings (or with them for that matter) grab the armour upgrade, as a 3+ save will go a long way towards keeping him safe from small arms fire like bolters when combined with Shrouded and an Invulnerable Save. Whatever your choice, he will be pricey, which means that that unless you making an army of mostly Monstrous Creatures or having a game at 2000 points or above, you really only have room for him or a Great Unclean One, not both.

Herald of Nurgle

Games Workshops Champion of Nurgle, as painted by Mengel Miniatures

My choice of go to guys for a Nurgle list, Heralds are the workhorse characters, accomplishing things that their Monstrous Creature counterparts couldn’t dream of. Versatile, cheap and deployed in 4s as a single HQ slot. I’ve already covered most of their uses in an earlier piece I wrote. To avoid repeating myself, it’s best I just link you to it here.

It is worth noting in addition though, that unlike the other gods Heralds, the ‘mount’ (does it even count as that?) that Heralds can take doesn’t really add much in the way of movement or added value, so they are best off staying in Plaguebearer units where they can be best utilized.

Herald Character: Epidermis

A sort of ‘Super Herald’ this character was a lot of players model of choice in the last codex because of just how broken he was and how loose rule wording meant you could end up having apocalypse games where all your Nurgle models (even from other lists that weren’t Chaos Daemons) had Feel no Pain and power weapons that wounded on a 2+. The models rules have been understandably toned down since then, to a 12″ radius with very reduced bonuses. In the end though, it means that now he’s not broken, and he’s not worth taking really!

Costing about 2 and a half times the cost of a normal Herald may have been excusable when he had the abilities to match, but now he’s very much a situational character, dependent on getting the kills in and being able to get close enough to the enemy for the effects to be useful.

Perhaps worth taking him in fun lists, as your opponent still won’t like it when his Hive Tyrant gets taken down by Nurglings if he’s at full steam. But his lack of mobility means that your opponent, if he’s careful, will be able to just engage units in combat outside of Epidermis’s 12″ range, negating any advantages.

Nurgle forces are slow enough as it is- the last thing you want is to be clumping up so you can be destroyed by blast weaponry.

So that’s it for my exploration of Nurgle units! Next week I will be talking Mono Nurgle Lists and Tactics. The week after that it will be Slannesh – just in time for New Year!

Firestorm games have most of the Nurgle range for sale on their site- all at a minimum of 10% off.

My continuing look at Codex Daemons focuses on Beasts of Nurgle. A mass of contradictory special rules, how on earth can you use this very odd unit? Truth is, I’m not exactly sure myself.

The current Games Workshop model. Not brilliant in my opinion.

So let’s get into this. What makes Beasts of Nurgle such a hard choice to justify is how they almost seem to fulfill the same role as Plague Drones, yet do it far less elegantly. Being cavalry does give them some advantages, and compared to most of your force they will seem to dash across the board in the blink of an eye. By other armies standards though, that’s still a little on the slow side.

It also seems counter productive for them to have that speed when you consider their special rule Attention Seeker, which allows them an out of turn sequence activation to charge any enemy unit that has charged one of your own within 12″. It’s a nifty little rule that will allow for some much-needed line defence of your force, which otherwise may occupy units with more important tasks like  Plague Drones or Greater Daemons.

Combine this with the It Will Not Die special rule and 4 wounds and you have the potential be a thorn in a units side due to them being immune to instant death from anything but Strength 10 weaponry and, sadly, force weapons. But then why the speed that will move them out ahead of the rest of the force? I can only assume its to help positioning and maybe if you want to use them as a flanking unit to your main battle force, slipping around to catch opponents squads in lovely no retreat scenarios.

The original Shaggoth like model, painted by Utan on Dakka Dakka

But then you take a look at the cost and well… a single Beast of Nurgle is not worth more than a Plague Drone. Not at all. Especially as they have no upgrades, what you are left with is a big lumbering beast that can take a hit whilst dishing out a random number of poisoned attacks. At least its D6+1, but even then, spending over 450 points for a full squad and a bad dice roll giving you only 18  poisoned attacks…well its not great. So what can you use Beasts of Nurgle for then?

Distraction and delays mostly, along with some defensive play.

A Beasts of Nurgle scratch build by deathsalvo. Amazing!

Using the speed of the unit, you can race ahead of the main force, or else Deep Strike in and distract an opponents firepower for a turn or two. Either way, there’s a good chance you will survive most shooting short of a Railgun or Demolisher shell (and if your opponent is using them on you, it’s win win for the rest of your force), panicking your opponent. No-one wants a unit that can’t be easily killed holding up their key combat units or assaulting a firebase. Even if they don’t do much, they should comfortably be able to hold up terminators for a few turns, neutering their effectiveness, or else taking down a low initiative Monstrous Creature or two.

If at all possible, you could even Deep Strike behind or into cover, which will increase your existing cover save provided by Shrouded, all ready for a next turn assault to add to an opponents woe even more! 

Then there’s the idea that you can use them to just support your line, acting as a deterrent against enemy units assaulting yours units. You will get defensive grenades anyway regardless due to Slime Trail, so even if an opponent then counter charges the Beasts of Nurgle, they won’t get any bonuses for charging, taking the bite out of many assault units.

Still, it’s really hard to recommend Beasts of Nurgle, especially as you can spend the points on things like Plague Drones or Daemon Princes instead. Perhaps proxy them first and see if you can find a role for them in your force.

In the end, their Attacks characteristic sums them up all too well. On a good turn, a full squad can munch through anything (64 poisoned attacks at turn!) whilst being a great road block to your opponent. On a bad day, it’s just a 450 point lump you throw at your opponent so they can’t get to the good stuff.

So that’s it for my exploration of Nurgle units! Next week I will be talking Mono Nurgle Lists and Tactics. The week after that it will be Slannesh – just in time for New Year!

Beasts of Nurgle currently aren’t available even from Games Workshop! Go ebay the lovely old models instead.

Whats the point of reviewing a book that’s two years old at this point? This irregular review series recognises excellence – and Atlas Infernal is most certainly excellent.

To a lot of newer readers, the name Inquisitor Bronislaw Czevak won’t mean much. But those of us who have been playing through the 90′s and early 2000′s Czevak was an enigmatic character.

Always in the background somewhere (even if it was just the a quote here and there) he seemed to be everywhere, yet nowhere all at once. Add in mysterious background like him being allowed to visit the Eldar Black Library and being pursued all over the galaxy by Ahriman for the knowledge he possessed and he was pretty cool dude all round.

Rob Sanders’ book takes us through the somewhat potted history we have of the character, whilst fleshing out his other adventures in the Eye of Terror as he attempts to escape the grasp of Ahriman, who wishes to use the knowledge in Czevak’s head to ascend to godhood.

Perhaps it was an unconscious thing, but in between the unreliable sense of time and the way a lot of the story seems to separated up into short adventures, I got a very Doctor Who feeling from the book. This was actually playing through my head a lot whilst I read, especially in the sections based on the plague planet.

At the same time, it’s certainly not a PG version of the 40k universe. Instead, Sanders uses Czevak’s unusual methods to highlight the weird crazy parts of the 40k universe we rarely get to hear about.

Pariahs, a Techpriest from the Relictors chapter (who reminded me very much of Brian Blessed for some reason), an Imperial Saint, a virus that makes one compulsively hunt for knowledge all make regular appearances and the final confrontation very aptly takes place in the mind more than on the battlefield.

There are a few problems with the book: mainly that towards the middle narration and sense of time starts getting confused and jumbled up, which was jarring at first. Before I read on I even thought it was a massive error that the editors had failed to notice.

When it becomes apparent what is happening though, it rewards repeated readings, which were far more rewarding than most books I’ve read in the Black Library range.

Impossible to categorise and a real page turner, Atlas Infernal is much like the titular Inquisitor himself. I really look forward to reading what trouble Czevak gets into next.

Atlas Infernal is available from The Black Library and all good high street bookstores. You can also purchase a few short stories featuring Inquisitor Czevak on the Black Library site. They really are worth your time.

The first big release of 2014 will be Tyranids for Warhammer 40,000. And let’s hope it’s not the unmitigated pile of shite the last book was. And before you fan rage me, that’s the feedback I’ve had when I’ve asked ‘Nid players. Timing wise the Games Workshop have got it bang on as they’ve released an army just after payday rather than just before it like usual.

True to form, Games Workshop have released another teaser cobbled together on iMovie which doesn’t do too bad a job building some suspense and almost feels like someone with a background in marketing may have been involved. First time for everything.

Before I head onto the Prince of Pleasure, lets talk mono Nurgle Lists. Due to the troops you have available in you choose to stick with just the god of pestilence, you won’t be able to make massive variations to your force. But you can have some mini themes regardless, that will still allow for quite a bit of variance in play style and tactics required.

All the lists will be 1,500 points, because that’s what the Throne of Skulls in the UK uses and I don’t see too many tournaments in the UK using a higher points limit.

Monstrous Hoard

A Monstrous Creature heavy army, from the NurgleonBass blog.

Theres nothing of subtlety here. Just walk forward and crush anything that gets too close. Use the Daemon princes with wings to lock down your opponents movement options.

Great Unclean One. Level 3 Psyker. 240 points

Great Unclean One. Level 3 Psyker 240 points

12 Plaguebearers. 108 points

12 Plaguebearers. 108 points

5 Nurgling bases 75 points

Daemon Prince of Nurgle. Wings, Warp Forged Armour. 1 Exalted Reward. Level 2 Pysker. 300 points

Daemon Prince of Nurgle. Wings, Warp Forged Armour. 1 Exalted Reward 250 points

Soul Grinder of Nurgle. Warp Gaze. 175 points

Total: 1496 points

The Pestilent Hoard

Weight of numbers and survivability is the name of the game here, with some armoured support to help crack tough nuts. Bog down your opponent and wear them down by simply being able to outlast them, along with a few surprises.

Herald of Nurgle. Lesser Reward. Greater Locus of Fecundity. 80 points

Herald of Nurgle. Lesser Reward. Greater Locus of Fecundity. 80 points

Herald of Nurgle. Lesser Reward. Greater Locus of Fecundity. 80 points

Herald of Nurgle. Lesser Reward. Lesser Locus of Virulence. 65 points

20 Plaguebearers. Icon and Instrument of Chaos. Plagueridden with Lesser Reward 215 points

20 Plaguebearers. Icon and Instrument of Chaos. Plagueridden with Lesser Reward 215 points

15 Plaguebearers. Icon and Instrument of Chaos. Plagueridden with Lesser Reward 170 points

4 Plague Drones. Plaguebringer with Lesser Reward. 183 points

Soul Grinder of Nurgle.  Warp Gaze, Phlegm Bombardment. 205 points

Soul Grinder of Nurgle.  Warp Gaze, Phlegm Bombardment. 205 points

Total: 1498 points

Now thats a Hoard! Models painted by the This – is – PAINT! Blog

Creeping Death

It’s not as if you will ever have a lightning fast force using Nurgle only models. But by emphasising the faster elements of the force, hopefully you can lock down an opponents powerful units, allowing Troops to Deep Strike in late to the game for some sneaky objective claiming.

Daemon Prince of Nurgle. Wings, Warp Forged Armour. 1 Exalted Reward 250 points

Daemon Prince of Nurgle. Wings, Warp Forged Armour. 1 Exalted Reward 250 points

10 Plaguebearers 90 points

10 Plaguebearers 90 points

10 Plaguebearers 90 points

3 Beasts of Nurgle 156 points

3 Beasts of Nurgle 156 points

4 Plague Drones. Death’s Heads. Plaguebringer with Lesser Reward. 203 points

4 Plague Drones. Death’s Heads. Plaguebringer with Lesser Reward. 203 points

Total: 1488 points

Bringing it all together…

A bit more of a balanced force than any other of the forces, this utilizes fast and hard-hitting elements to support a solid defensive troops section that can defend objectives.

After all, its objectives that win a game in most scenarios.

Great Unclean One. Level 3 Psyker. 240 points

Herald of Nurgle. Lesser Reward. Greater Locus of Fecundity. 80 points

Herald of Nurgle. Lesser Reward. Greater Locus of Fecundity. 80 points

10 Plaguebearers.  Icon and Instrument of Chaos. Plagueridden with Lesser Reward. 125 points

10 Plaguebearers.  Icon and Instrument of Chaos. Plagueridden with Lesser Reward. 125 points

10 Plaguebearers.  Icon and Instrument of Chaos. Plagueridden with Lesser Reward. 125 points

6 Plague Drones. Plague Banner. Plagueridden, 1 Lessser Reward. 307 points

Soul Grinder of Nurgle. Warp Gaze. 175 points

Daemon Prince of Nurgle. Wings and Armour of Damnation. 1 Greater Reward.

Total: 1497pts

A great Nurgle themed army, first displayed on the Spikey Bits site

So there you have it- some list ideas to go with my prior Nurgle Tacticas. Combine the two and get gaming already!

Tyranids are once again lumbering into view with a new codex, lots of old models re-boxed and marked up (two Carnifexes/Carnifi for £55) and a couple of new models to spice things up.

Sadly, the two big releases, the Harpy and the Haruspex have really failed to set my mind pin-wheeling which is a first for a while as regardless of price, I’ve really liked the majority of the new models Games Workshop have produced lately. The Harpy looks too small. Too short and fat and lacks the awesomeness of the Harridan or the sleek design of the winged Hive Tyrant.

Equally the Haruspex is just a hideous, messy, borderline cartoon sculpt that has no business being in a game that doesn’t contain the words Hero and Clix in it. And the stupid distended jaw kinda remind me of the dog from Despicable Me.

But I’m sure there will be some truly badass rules in the new Codex that will make either these models or the alternatives available to build in the kits an absolute essential purchase. Games Workshop aren’t stupid. Wankers, but not stupid.

The new Tyranid range is available to pre-order from Firestorm Games.